


More than Friends

by adelesbian



Category: Fantastic Four (Comicverse), Marvel (Comics), Spider-Man (Comicverse), Spider-Man - All Media Types
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Everyone Is Gay, Fluff and Angst, Friends With Benefits, Johnny needs therapy, M/M, background monica/jen because i have a problem
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-04
Updated: 2019-02-04
Packaged: 2019-10-22 12:15:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,577
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17662460
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/adelesbian/pseuds/adelesbian
Summary: Peter smiled and look down at his empty plate. “What if we had sex occasionally?” he asked.Johnny’s brow furrowed. “Like no strings attached?”Peter nodded his head.“Sure,” Johnny said as a million and one things ran through his head. He wanted Peter more than anything in the world, and if all he got from Peter was having sex occasionally then it was enough. It was something, and something was better than nothing.





	More than Friends

It was just sex, desperate, honest sex that only happened because they were close together and so charged off of adrenaline that they were desperate to touch one another. Johnny woke up still in Peter’s bed basking in the afterglow of finally kissing (and fucking) Peter after chasing him for so long. He reached over to brush Peter’s hair out of his face, and Peter waved his hand to brush Johnny away sleepily. Johnny laid back and smiled warmth washing over him.  
Then Peter’s alarm went off and the peace was gone. He was up looking for clothes, changing, eating breakfast, all without saying a word to Johnny. He was halfway out the door when he froze and turned around to see if Johnny was still there.  
“Morning, handsome,” Johnny said as Peter peeked into the bedroom.  
“Oh, you’re still here,” Peter said leaning on the door.  
“Yeah,” Johnny said.  
“I have to get to work, but I need to talk to you later,” Peter said.  
“Okay, see you then,” Johnny said. He waited for a kiss, but Peter just left his apartment without a second thought.  
Johnny got changed into his clothing and left Peter’s apartment locking the door behind him. Something felt off about the whole morning routine. He didn’t even say anything to Johnny until he remembered he was there. Johnny got home to his apartment his whole mood dissipated. He sat at his kitchen table and laid his head down wondering if Peter regretted what happened.  
These insidious thoughts plagued him for the rest of the day until Peter finally showed up to talk. Johnny made him some dinner just to have something to do to fill the awkward silence. Peter kept insisting that he had to leave soon, but he didn’t.  
“I’m sorry about last night,” Peter said as Johnny put a plate of food in front of him.  
“Why?” Johnny asked trying to smile to hide the fact that he wanted to die.  
“It was a mistake,” Peter said. “We… I-”  
Johnny cut in. “It was just sex,” he said wishing that he hadn’t because it wasn’t just sex, not to him.  
Peter suddenly looked relieved. “Thank god, I was worried you would think it was more,” he said.  
Johnny winced. “I’m not that clingy,” he said.  
Peter didn’t say anything but rather took a bite of the food that Johnny placed before him. Johnny tried his best to hide his hurt. He didn’t blame Peter for not wanting to date him; he didn’t exactly have a great track record with dating and he didn’t really bring much to the table other than looks.  
“It was good sex,” Peter said looking up from his food.  
Johnny looked up. “It’s a gift,” he said.  
Peter smiled. “You really are sure of yourself. It could have just been the adrenaline.”  
“You want to try again to find out,” Johnny said taking a bite.  
“Tempting,” Peter said looking down at his plate.  
“Sounds like you want to,” Johnny said smirking.  
Peter finished. “I’m definitely thinking about it,” he said.  
“You’re still here despite ‘having somewhere else to be’,” Johnny said putting his fork down.  
Peter smiled and look down at his empty plate. “What if we had sex occasionally?” he asked.  
Johnny’s brow furrowed. “Like no strings attached?”  
Peter nodded his head.  
“Sure,” Johnny said as a million and one things ran through his head. He wanted Peter more than anything in the world, and if all he got from Peter was having sex occasionally then it was enough. It was something, and something was better than nothing.  
“You can’t tell anyone though,” Peter said, “I’ve got a lot going on, and I-”  
“It’s fine,” Johnny said cutting him off, I wouldn’t tell anyone about me either…

Johnny woke up in Peter’s bed again. Peter was already gone which meant that he expected Johnny to be gone when he got back which was fine because Johnny was going to eat brunch with Jen anyways. He looked at the time on his phone. He was running late so he took a shower at Peter’s and flew back to his apartment to change. Good thing he could count on Jen being late anyways. She’d only just texted him asking where he was when he landed.  
“Sorry I’m late, I was-”  
Jen pointed to her neck mirroring where he had a very visible hickey. “I think I’ve got an idea,” she said. “Who gave you those, Torch?” His face must have revealed all his feelings because Jen stood up and hugged him. “You wanna talk about it?” she asked softly.  
“I can’t,” Johnny said sitting down.  
“Bullshit,” Jen snapped.  
“I really can't. I promised not to tell anyone,” Johnny said.  
“I’m not just anyone,” Jen said. “Who am I gonna tell?”  
Johnny placed his face in his hands and let out a long sigh before telling Jen everything that happened. He delved into too many details in some places (the sex), but Jen didn't stop him from sharing despite the pained expression she got as he described each encounter in great detail. She stared at him her face growing more and more pained as he told her about how often he would wake up after Peter left without even bothering to say anything to him up.  
“None of this is fair to you,” Jen said softly touching his hand.  
“I don’t know what to do because I want him so bad, but not like this,” Johnny said.  
“Then tell him,” Jen insisted.  
Johnny let out a long sigh. “What if I lose him forever?” he asked.  
Jen’s eyes narrowed. “Then he’s a dick and you deserve better,” she said.  
“Do I though?” Johnny asked. He didn’t think he did. He deserved what was happening. Peter always just out of reach, ashamed of him. He would be too.  
“Johnny, you deserve someone who can give you the world,” Jen said.  
“I screw everything up,” Johnny whispered.  
“You don’t Johnny,” Jen said, “Look, I know this isn’t the advice you want, but maybe going to a therapist would help? You’re going through so much right now.”  
“I don’t need therapy,” Johnny said.  
“It’s not quite the same thing, but I started seeing someone again because…” Jen stopped for a moment, “well you know why.”  
“I’m not exactly turning into a rage monster,” Johnny said.  
“Just because you don’t physically doesn’t mean there’s nothing going on on the inside that’s just as bad as what happened to me,” Jen said.

Johnny sat on his couch watching television listless. He was covered in blankets for no other reason besides to feel cozy. His phone was going off in his bedroom, but he didn’t have the energy to go check it. He wasn’t even watching the tv at this point just letting it play as he zoned out.  
Johnny heard his bedroom window slide up, and he jumped up ready to fight whoever was breaking into his house. “Just me, flamebrain,” Peter said opening his bedroom door.  
“Fuck, Peter, you gave me a heart attack,” Johnny said clutching his chest.  
“Sorry, Ben asked me to check on you because Jen asked him to check on you, but you wouldn’t answer his calls and he didn’t want to just barge in. Luckily, I do barge in,” Peter said.  
“Lucky me,” Johnny said staring at the reason for his torment. He hated how much he wanted him. He wanted to kiss his stupid face and ride him until he blacked out, but more than anything he wanted to be with him, to go places with him. To go on dates.  
Peter looked around the room noticing the dishes that were piling up and the trashy television playing, the mountain of blankets that Johnny didn’t need. “You, uh, alright?” he asked.  
Johnny wasn’t quite certain why he burst out crying, but here he was sobbing in Peter’s arms. “Hey, hey, it’s okay,” Peter whispered kissing his hair and face gently, softly, tenderly…  
Johnny held on for dear life wishing that he could tell Peter what was on his mind, but he couldn’t. “What’s wrong?” Peter asked.  
“I miss them,” Johnny said, and it wasn’t a lie. “I miss them so much.”  
Peter held him tighter. “I know,” he mumbled.  
Johnny wiped his eyes. His throat was tight. Peter kissed Johnny’s eyelids softly then ran his thumb below them drying off any tears Johnny left.  
“I’m so alone,” Johnny said his throat scratchy.  
Peter drew him to his chest. “You’ve got me,” he said kissing his hair.  
Johnny nodded his head, but he wanted to ask if he did. Did he really have Peter or was he just someone that he clung to? Something to hold onto at Peter’s convenience. Johnny burrowed his face into Peter’s chest taking in a long breath savoring this.  
“I wouldn’t do that,” Peter said laughing softly. “I just got done with my rounds.”  
“‘S fine,” Johnny said closing his eyes and breathing in Peter. He smelled like sweat and chemicals, a combination that Johnny never got tired of even if it wasn’t exactly a bottle of one hundred dollar cologne.  
“Your funeral.”  
Johnny held onto Peter for quite a while before finally, they both decided to watch a movie. Johnny cuddled against Peter as he made jokes throughout the whole film. If it were anyone else besides Peter he would have been upset that they wouldn’t be quiet, but Peter made him laugh and at the moment he needed to laugh. But laughing with Peter could be dangerous, and the arm placed heavy on his shoulders made it even harder to think about anything but Peter.  
“This is super date-y,” Johnny said trying to get some acknowledgment of how he felt out of him.  
“We’re best friends,” Peter said looking over at Johnny confused. “Best friends do this kind of stuff.”  
“Best friends who are fucking,” Johnny corrected him.  
“Taking bromance to every possible level, I guess,” Peter said.  
Johnny laughed emptily. “I guess we're best friends with benefits,” he said. It hurt to say it out loud even as a joke.  
“BFWB's,” Peter said laughing. He has a nice laugh that Johnny could listen to all day.  
“Shut up,” Johnny said hitting him with the closest pillow in reach.  
Peter shielded himself. “Hey!” he exclaimed, “I’m trying to watch this.”  
Johnny hit him with the pillow again. “You and I both know that’s not true,” he said.  
“I happen to like Into Darkness,” Peter said grabbing Johnny’s wrist to stop him from hitting him again.  
“You have terrible taste,” Johnny said.  
“Shut up.”  
“Make me,” Johnny said smiling for a moment.  
“You’re the worst,” Peter said his eyes catching Johnny’s.  
“This movie sucks and you just won’t admit-”  
Peter kissed him suddenly to shut him up about the movie, and Johnny started to take off his shirt as they fell back on the couch. Peter caught his hands and came up for air. “No sex right now,” he said maybe not picking his words right.  
Johnny stared at Peter for a moment trying to find words, but he couldn’t so he just nodded his head and cuddled next to Peter as his chest felt like it was collapsing in on itself. He closed his eyes trying to push dark thoughts out of his mind. I wouldn’t want me either, Johnny thought falling asleep holding Peter tightly.  
He woke up alone in his bed to the sound of his phone going off. He reached over to his bedside to grab it. He answered it lazily.  
“Did Ben visit?” Jen’s voice insisted.  
“No,” Peter said wiping his eyes. “He asked Peter to come over.”  
“Fuck, I’m gonna kill Ben.”  
“I feel like shit. Can I call you back?”  
“Come on. Talk to me. You don’t have to say much just something.”  
“I just… I don’t think he actually wants me, and I don’t blame him…”  
“Johnny, sweetie, it’s his loss. It really is.”  
“I don’t think it is…”

“She-Hulk was really rude to me the last time I saw her,” Peter said playing with Johnny's hair. It was one of those rare mornings that he actually stayed in bed with Johnny. He must have a day off.  
“Oh?” Johnny said cuddling closer to savor what little time he got next to Peter.  
“It was weird because we’ve always gotten along before,” Peter said wrapping his arms around Johnny’s shoulders.  
“Maybe you did something the last time she saw you,” Johnny said closing his eyes and breathing in.  
“I don't think I did,” Peter said. “Maybe she got one of my clones mixed up with me or something. I’ll try and find out next time I see her.”  
Johnny's eyes snapped open as he realized why she was mean to Peter. He must have tensed up because Peter sat up and glared at him. “What did you tell her?” he asked.  
“Nothing,” Johnny lied. Peter glared at him, and Johnny cracked. “Okay, I told her that we were fucking,” Johnny admitted, but before Johnny could explain why he was interrupted.  
“Johnny, I asked you not to tell anyone!” Peter exclaimed.  
“I had to talk to someone!” Johnny said.  
“Why couldn’t you talk to me? You had to tell someone else everything about our relationship after I ask you not to!”  
“What relationship? You made it very clear we’re only fucking!” Johnny shouted, but as soon as the words were out of his mouth he regretted them and wanted to stuff them back inside of him and lock them up so they’d never come out again.  
Peter stared at him his mouth open. It seemed like he was speechless for the first time in his life, and that gave Johnny enough time to grab his clothing off the floor and march to the door.  
“Wait, Johnny,” Peter said just as Johnny threw open the door.  
Johnny turned towards Peter waiting for him to say something, but nothing seemed to come to his lips. “That’s what I thought,” Johnny said stepping out the door and into the shitty hallway that he’d walk through more times than he knew off the top of his head. His clothes were a mess and so was his hair. He felt gross, but all he had to do was get out the building and around the corner then he’d go into an alleyway and fly home. He cursed as he realized he left his phone in Peter’s apartment. He could just buy a new one anyway, but he couldn’t get calls for a while. He was frustrated and needed to talk to someone so instead of going home he went to Jen’s to tell her what happened. He knocked on her door leaning his forehead against it as hot tears ran down his face and fogged up his vision.  
Jen opened it giggling softly at some joke that Johnny hadn’t heard. She saw Johnny’s face and drew him in for a hug. “What happened?” she asked.  
“Jen, who’s at the door?” a woman’s voice asked.  
“It’s Johnny,” Jen said looking over her shoulder. “Something happened.”  
“Okay,” her voice said with only a hint of playful annoyance.  
Jen brought Johnny into her apartment. Monica Rambeau was sitting on the couch her legs tucked up against her chest. She was in one of Jen’s robe’s, and it would have been very short on Jen but Monica was much smaller than Jen. Johnny looked between them feeling terrible that he barged in on them.  
“I can go if it’s a bad time,” he said rubbing his eyes.  
“No, it’s fine,” Jen said sitting next to Monica. “What happened?” Johnny’s eyes darted over to Monica for a second. “Monica’s not gonna tell anyone. She barely knows Spider-Man.”  
Monica looked over at Jen. “I’ve hit him before if that makes you feel better,” she said.  
“He found out that I told you,” Johnny said.  
“Oh, fuck Johnny, I’m so sorry,” Jen said.  
Johnny shrugged feeling tired, so tired. “He got angry, and I got angry,” Johnny said for the first time skipping the details, “and I don’t know if he’ll ever want to see me again, and I want to see him again. I think I love him, but I mess everything up.”  
“I don’t think you could have because when we were on the Mighty Avengers together he wouldn’t stop talking about you,” Monica said.  
Johnny looked over at her hopeful for a second. “He talked about me?”  
“Yeah, he was doing a check up on me, and we were talking. And I was talking about Jen and Adam because,” Monica coughed so that they would get the idea, “and he was talking about you. Even I noticed, and I barely know you.”  
“Really?” Johnny said smiling for a moment before remembering the fight he and Peter had. His smile faded like someone blew out a candle. “He probably won’t feel that way anymore. I fucked up.”  
“Shut up. He’s the one who fucked up,” Jen said. “He’s losing one of the only decent men I’ve ever met in my whole life.”  
Johnny smiled. “I don’t think he knows that…”

It was late at night. Johnny was tossing and turning with his sheets pooling around his hips. Johnny didn’t hear the knock on his window, but he did hear someone trying to open it. He lit up the whole room as he burst into flames.  
“It's me, flamebrain,” Peter said through the window. “Can you let me in?”  
“Go away,” Johnny said wrapping himself up in his sheets and looking out at Peter sticking to his window.  
“I need to talk to you,” Peter said.  
“Go ahead and talk, but I'm not letting you in,” Johnny said more for himself than Peter.  
Peter sighed. “Okay. I deserve this,” he said. Johnny leaned on the wall with his arms crossed as he waited for Peter to start explaining.  
“I messed up. I ruined everything we had because I never know the right thing to say, and I never think before I talk,” Peter said.  
Johnny slowly opened the window to get a better look at Peter. “Get in,” he said.  
Peter slipped inside ripping off his mask as soon as Johnny shut the window behind him. His face was flushed, and Johnny wasn’t sure if it was because of embarrassment or exertion.  
“I'm really dumb, Johnny. I don’t know what I have while I have it, and I had you and I ruined it,” Peter said.  
Johnny’s brow furrowed. He ruined it? Johnny was the one who ruined it.  
“I was really scared,” Peter said, “and I’m still a little scared. But I want you so bad, and I think that’s stronger than how scared I am. I want you to be my boyfriend because I’m in love with you and I think I always have been.”  
Tears welled up in Johnny’s eyes. “Why?” he asked.  
Peter put his hands on Johnny’s face, and Johnny looked away to wipe the tears that hadn’t fallen yet. “Cuz you’re amazing,” Peter said, “You’re my best friend, and you mean so much to me. You’re so loyal and you’re always so positive and you’re ridiculously handsome. God and your smile is gorgeous and your laugh, god your laugh...”  
Johnny looked over at Peter slowly tears refusing to stop falling. “You really mean those things?” he asked.  
“Yeah,” Peter said his brow furrowing. “I’m in love you.”  
Johnny leaned into Peter’s chest weeping. “I can’t believe you’re saying this,” he said, “I’ve dreamed of you saying this, but now you are and I-”  
Peter kissed him delicately. “I want to be your boyfriend,” he said quietly. “I want everyone to see me with you. I want to kiss you in public. I want to-”  
“Yes,” Johnny said silencing Peter with another kiss.  
Peter laughed wiped Johnny’s eyes. “To which part?” he asked.  
“All of it,” Johnny said wrapping his arms around Peter and leaning his head on Peter’s shoulder. “Can you say it again?”  
“What?” Peter asked kissing Johnny’s hair.  
“That you love me,” Johnny mumbled closing his eyes wishing that this could last forever.  
Peter smiled and ran his fingers through Johnny’s hair. “I love you,” he whispered into Johnny’s ear sending shivers down his spine.  
“I love you, too.”

Johnny stood outside Jen’s apartment holding a box of chocolate. Jen opened the door staring at him for a moment as he handed them to her and walked inside. “That’s from Peter as a thank you,” Johnny said.  
Jen smiled for a moment. “You wanna come in?” she asked jokingly as he took a seat on her sofa.  
“Jen, I need to go to a therapist,” Johnny said.  
Jen let out a long sigh of relief. “Thank god. I’ve been so worried,” she said hugging him tightly. “I have so many cards and pamphlets for you.”  
“What’s therapy like?” he asked his voice shaking for a moment. “I don’t think I’m crazy…”  
“And I am?” Jen asked shoving his shoulder softly.  
“You were turning into a giant gray hulk,” Johnny said his voice dripping with skepticism.  
“You were staying in bed for days,” Jen said crossing her arms.  
“Okay… Maybe I’m not okay,” Johnny admitted.  
“Look, therapy isn’t a magical fix-all for your problems. You’ll have to work to get better, and it’s a lot of work. But it’s a start.”  
“I think that’s enough for now.”

**Author's Note:**

> I'd love some comments they make me happy! You should also reblog from my tumblr which is the same username as here! Thanks for reading! <3


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